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Making small adjustments is key to transitioning from night owl to early bird.

For most night owls the thought of being a morning runner sounds like a dream in a far away land. Waking up early when the snooze button is within reach can seem like an impossible feat for a runner more inclined to sleep in and sneak their run in later in the day. For many runners, however, necessity forces them to run in the morning or they risk not running that day. With a job, family, endless errands and responsibilities, finding time for a run later in the day can seem near impossible at times.

Waking up even just a half hour earlier in the morning is one way to ensure your run happens before you set about tackling your daily schedule and responsibilities. Learning to skip the snooze button and become a morning person is the tough part, but Atlanta psychiatrist and psychologist Tracey Marks, who authored the book “Master Your Sleep”, knows anyone can make themselves a morning person. “I do think its possible for people to switch from being night owls to be able to be more energetic and more alert in the daytime,” Marks says.

Marks notes that making this change is not an overnight marvel, but requires making a change to your lifestyle. “It really is more of a lifestyle change. It’s not a quick fix,” Marks says. “If you’re up until midnight on your iPad [becoming a morning person] is not going to work.”

A runner who makes small adjustments to his or her sleep schedule and works toward becoming a morning person–rather than trying to make the switch over night–will find more success. Here are some of the small lifestyle changes Marks suggests for making the transition to from night owl to early bird.